The 2025-26 regular season is over, and the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs have just begun. However, it's never too early to start planning for 2026-27 fantasy hockey drafts. Changes to rosters via the NHL Draft, free agency and trades could alter the rankings. There may also be injuries in the playoffs, offseason or training camp that force adjustments. Still, this can serve as a starting point for first-round possibilities.
1. Connor McDavid, C, Edmonton Oilers
McDavid led the league with 90 assists and 138 points in 82 games in 2025-26, capturing his sixth Art Ross Trophy. He has reached the 100-point plateau in six consecutive campaigns and has topped the NHL in points four times during that span. McDavid also led the pack with 43 multipoint performances and 54 power-play points in 2025-26.
2. Nathan MacKinnon, C, Colorado Avalanche
MacKinnon, surprisingly, has not topped the league in points yet, but he did claim his first Maurice Richard Trophy in 2025-26 after netting a career-high 53 markers. He also topped the NHL with a plus-57 rating, 42 even-strength tallies and 350 shots on goal. MacKinnon has paced the league in shots on target in each of the past three seasons.
3. Nikita Kucherov, RW, Tampa Bay Lightning
Kucherov comfortably surpassed the 100-point threshold for a fourth straight campaign in 2025-26, finishing second in the league with 130 points across 76 appearances. He also potted 44 goals for the second time in the last three seasons. Kucherov was second in the NHL with 40 multipoint efforts in 2025-26. Over the last three seasons, he has led the way with 395 points and 136 power-play points in 235 outings. However, his shots per 60 minutes have dropped in each year during that span.
4. Leon Draisaitl, C/LW, Edmonton Oilers
Draisaitl suited up in only 65 games during the 2025-26 campaign, but he still made a significant impact. He amassed 35 goals on 186 shots and 97 points. Draisaitl was fourth in the league in points before missing the final 14 contests of the homestretch. He also tied for third overall with 42 power-play points. Draisaitl should get back on track in 2026-27 after posting five consecutive 100-point performances before last season.
5. Macklin Celebrini, C, San Jose Sharks
Celebrini took the next step into superstardom thanks to a remarkable sophomore season. He generated 45 goals, 115 points, including 33 on the power play, and 287 shots on net over 82 appearances. He ranked fourth in the league in points and nearly willed the rebuilding Sharks into a playoff spot. The 19-year-old phenom will be high on draft boards going into 2026-27.
6. Cale Makar, D, Colorado Avalanche
Makar had 90 points in 2023-24 and a career-high 92 points in 2024-25, but he slipped to 79 points across 75 appearances last season. Still, he scored at least 20 goals for a third straight year while posting 199 shots and 117 blocks. Makar also ranked third among blueliners with 29 power-play points. He leads all defenders with 261 points and 103 power-play points over the past three seasons.
7. David Pastrnak, RW, Boston Bruins
Pastrnak achieved the 100-point milestone for a fourth straight season in 2025-26. He had just 29 goals after scoring at least 40 in his previous four campaigns, but he dished out a career-high 71 assists while posting 261 shots, 86 hits and 33 power-play points. His shooting percentage (11.1) also dropped below his career average (13.6) and should improve in 2026-27.
8. Martin Necas, RW, Colorado Avalanche
Necas has been a superb addition for the Avalanche since being acquired from the Hurricanes in 2024-25. In 108 regular-season contests with Colorado, he has 49 goals and 79 assists. The 27-year-old winger established personal bests in goals (38), assists (62), points (100) and hits (85) across 78 appearances in 2025-26. He also had 24 power-play points.
9. Mikko Rantanen, LW/RW, Dallas Stars
Rantanen was productive in his first season with Dallas despite being limited to 64 appearances. He registered 22 goals and a team-high 55 assists while picking up 139 shots and 34 power-play points. Still, operating at a 99-point pace over a full 82-game season should keep his fantasy stock high, especially since he didn't miss much time in his previous three campaigns.
10. Kirill Kaprizov, LW, Minnesota Wild
Kaprizov collected his fourth season with at least 40 goals, scoring 45 times while adding 44 assists in 78 games. He tied for third in the league with 19 power-play tallies and had 268 shots. His dip in offensive production during the fourth quarter put a damper on what was a solid bounce-back showing for the 28-year-old. However, his scoring potential makes him a worthwhile first-round selection.
11. Jason Robertson, LW/RW, Dallas Stars
Robertson came close to returning to his 2022-23 form, when he recorded 46 goals and 109 points. He lit the lamp 45 times on 294 shots and had 96 points last campaign. Robertson placed fifth in the league with 41 power-play points, including a career-high 15 goals. His durability and 100-point ceiling give him plenty of fantasy value going into 2026-27.
12. Evan Bouchard, D, Edmonton Oilers
Bouchard led all defensemen with 74 assists and 95 points in 82 games during the 2025-26 campaign. He achieved personal bests in goals (21), assists and points. He also earned 33 power-play points, 221 shots and 101 blocks. Bouchard sits tied for the second-most points among blueliners over the last three seasons. If he returns to the 20-goal and 90-point marks in 2026-27, then he enters Makar territory in terms of offensive prowess and category coverage.
Honorable Mentions:
Auston Matthews, C, Toronto Maple Leafs: Matthews struggled offensively in 2025-26, notching only 27 goals and 53 points in 60 games. However, the 28-year-old has led the league in goals in three of the last six seasons and has considerable bounce-back potential if he stays healthy and his deployment improves.
Nick Suzuki, C, Montreal Canadiens: Suzuki has been steadily improving and surpassed the 100-point plateau for the first time in his NHL career in 2025-26. He also recorded personal bests in helpers (72) and power-play points (43). He is tied for the sixth-most points in the league over the last two campaigns.
Quinn Hughes (D, Minnesota Wild), Zach Werenski (D, Columbus Blue Jackets): Hughes and Werenski are likely to go high in fantasy drafts because of their offensive acumen from the blue line.
Jack Hughes, C/LW, New Jersey Devils: Hughes' offensive prowess is unquestionable, but his inability to stay healthy holds back his fantasy value. Still, the upside is there for 100-plus points if he can finally put those concerns to rest.
Colorado defenseman Brett Kulak knocks Kings left wing Trevor Moore into Avalanche goaltender Scott Wedgewood. (Jack Dempsey / Associated Press)
The Kings haven’t won an NHL playoff series since the last time they won the Stanley Cup, which is to say it’s been a while.
They’re halfway to another early exit after a 2-1 overtime loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday, a result that gave the Avalanche a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series. The winning goal came from Nicolas Roy 7:44 in the extra period.
The Kings’ lone goal came from Artemi Panarin while captain Gabriel Landeskog had the other Colorado goal.
“We did play really well,” interim coach D.J. Smith said. “We’ve got to find a way to win a game. Clearly, good isn't enough. We’ve got to win a game and keep taking a piece of them and keep playing physical and give ourselves a chance to keep lengthening the series.”
Panarin gave the Kings a 1-0 lead on a wrister from the inside edge of the right circle with less than seven minutes left in regulation. It was his second power-play goal of the series and it came on the Kings’ fifth power play of the night.
It also came after the Kings got a fortunate break, with a Colorado clearing pass striking a linesman, leading to a faceoff in the Kings’ offensive end.
Landeskog evened things for Colorado 3 1/2 minutes later, escaping Kings forward Scott Laughton to skate to a Martin Necas pass through the crease before pushing the puck inside the left post to send the game to overtime.
For the Kings, it marked their 34th overtime in 84 games this season, an NHL record. They lost 21 of them but Tuesday’s was the most painful, with Roy scoring on a deflection in the crease.
“We had every opportunity,” Smith said. “You’ve got to be able to close it out.”
The teams now head to Crypto.com Arena for games Thursday and Sunday with the Kings needing at least one win to extend their season.
“I expect that we'll be better at home,” Smith said.
To do that, the Kings are going to have to stop wasting the kind of opportunities they had in Denver, where they converted just two of nine power-play chances and failed to score on a penalty shot in the first two games.
The physical series turned chippy in late in Game 1 and that carried over to the start of Game 2 with a pair of scuffles, each involving more than a half-dozen players, breaking out 12 seconds apart midway through the first period. The teams combined for seven penalties in a fast-paced opening 20 minutes played with a lot of open ice.
Quinton Byfield had two chances to put the Kings on the board just more than three minutes into the second period but Colorado goalie Scott Wedgewood came up big both times.
Kings goaltender Anton Forsberg makes a save during overtime of Game 2. (Jack Dempsey / Associated Press)
The first came when Byfield charged Wedgewood on a breakaway, only to have the goalie stop his wrister from in close. But Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar was called for hooking Byfield from behind on the play, setting up a penalty shot. Wedgewood stopped that too.
An over-excited group of fans celebrated the two saves by breaking a pane of glass behind the Kings bench, sending the coaches scurrying and pausing the game for several minutes as workmen repaired the damage. But 16 seconds after play resumed, the Avalanche took another penalty, their sixth of seven on the night.
The Colorado penalties left the Kings with a man advantage for nearly a quarter of the game’s first 25 minutes, but their power play couldn’t take advantage against a Colorado penalty kill that ranked No. 1 in the NHL during the regular season.
“Obviously, you just want the opportunities,” forward Trevor Moore said. “Now we’ve just got to make the most of them.”
Colorado’s best scoring chance in the first two periods came on a three-on-one rush less than five minutes before the second intermission, but Kings defenseman Mikey Anderson reached in to break up the play and keep the game scoreless.
Colorado celebrates its Game 2 victory over the Kings. (Jack Dempsey / Associated Press)
Sam Malinski appeared to give the Avalanche the lead on a slap shot from above the left circle 10 seconds into the final period, but after the horn sounded and the goal was put in the scoreboard, the officials correctly ruled the puck had struck the outside of the net.
Five minutes later Byfield fanned on a loose puck in the crease, allowing Wedgewood to roll over and clear it from in front of the open net.
Now the Kings come home, where they won six of their final seven regular-season games, the only loss coming in a shootout. But they haven’t beaten the Avalanche anywhere this season and if they have to at least once in the next two games to avoid their seventh straight first-round playoff exit.
“Thought we played better tonight,” Moore said. “So we’ve to to try to just take the positives and get to L.A. and play a good game.”
In what was one of the wildest games we've seen so far in the postseason, the Los Angeles Kings entered Game 2 in Denver in what was as big a game for the Kings, looking to tie the series 1-1.
As it turns out, LA suffered a heartbreaking road overtime defeat after a back-and-forth effort, resulting in a 2-1 loss. The Kings were exceptional on defense, led by Anton Forsberg, Mikey Anderson, and Mathieu Joseph, holding the Avs to two goals, but once again couldn't score on offense, leaving the door open for Colorado to strike.
Arguably, it was the greatest defensive performance we've seen from the Kings this season, with 23 hits, 26 blocked shots, and Colorado going 0/3 on the power play. LA was making all the plays on defense to try to steal this game, but they couldn't hold on late.
The Kings wanted to play physical, and we got it against the Presidents' Trophy winners. The game had no flow in the first period, several minor penalties, and scrums in the first 14 minutes of regulation.
Once again, both teams were very slow offensively, especially on the power play, missing easy shots that should have gone in. LA and Colorado combined for five power plays in the first period and converted on zero of them.
The physical play and hits were there, making it hard for either team to generate good looks. Trevor Moore had a very good look early in the game after finding himself alone for a chance to give LA the lead, but Avs goaltender Scott Wedgewood made a nice save to stop the goal.
Both goaltenders did an excellent job in the first period, especially on the power play, killing the opposing team's scoring chances. Even with the Avalanche having more shots on goal, the Kings had plenty of chances to score, but once again were struggling to capitalize after getting timely stops.
For the second straight game, we ended the first period scoreless. LA did a good job of increasing its physicality and taking big hits against the Avalanche, despite being outshot 14-6 after 20 minutes.
LAK increased physicality and PK keeps them in game through 20. Through 4 periods, Anton Forsberg best King. Has to change.
To open the second period, at the 16:48 mark, Colorado was on the power play, and Quinton Byfield stole the puck for a breakaway rush by himself against Wedgewood, but came up short after an extended glove save to stop the breakaway goal.
LA continued to miss opportunities on offense, with its defense coming up big; the offense needs to start capitalizing on those key turnovers and stops at some point.
The game continued to get physical. LA did a good job getting hits, especially Mathieu Joseph, who already had six hits midway through the second. Certainly, it was his best game with the Kings this season.
LA's defense continued to make big stops, especially on the 3-on-1 with the Avs having a chance to score, but Mikey Anderson got a stick on Martin Necas to kill the play. In the last few minutes of the period, the Avs had good chances to score, but credit Anton Forsberg, Drew Doughty, and Mikey Anderson for playing their role on defense.
After 40 minutes, the game remained 0-0. Great effort from the Kings defensively in that period to keep the Avs off the scoreboard, but LA still was struggling to capitalize on offense.
0-0 through 40 minutes.
What an effort from the Kings thus far. Forsberg exceptional in the final few minutes to keep that game without a goal.
At the 19:50 mark of the final period, Colorado thought they had scored a goal, but the puck landed on the outside of the net, overturning the goal. LA kept dodging serious bullets with the Avs struggling to score, but so was LA, leaving the door wide open for Colorado to score.
The tension was so high that the referees were just letting both teams play, without calling penalties.
Finally, at the 6:56 mark, LA scored the first goal of the game to take a 1-0 lead. It was the breadman, Artemi Panarin, scoring the power play goal on a one-timer goal, the biggest goal of Panarin's time with the Kings.
Definitely the best all-around game we've seen from the Kings this season, especially in a hostile playoff environment on the road.
But it was clear at one point the Avs would strike back, and they did. At the
But it was clear at one point the Avs would strike back, and they did. At the 3:35 mark, Colorado got a very good look at the net after great puck movement. The open look secured a goal for captain Gabriel Landeskog to tie it 1-1.
After a gritty last two minutes of regulation, we were headed to overtime in Denver for extra periods. Credit LA for the effort on defense, holding the No. 1 offense in hockey to just one goal.
In overtime, the Kings once again had an opportunity to seal this game and tie it 1-1 after forward Samuel Helenius had an easy shot with Wedgewood losing his stick, but another clutch save by Wedegwood killed the chance.
The Avalanche sealed the game in the extra periods, capitalizing on LA's missed chances to win and take a 2-0 series lead. Center Nicolas Roy cleaned up the rebound and put the puck just under the legs of LA to win a gritty game.
Key Stats
Despite the loss, credit the Kings' defense for playing an excellent game throughout regulation. To hold the league's best offense to just two goals was special.
Anton Forsberg, starting in his second playoff game, was exceptional, finishing with 34 saves on 36 shots. Artemi Panarin, for the second straight game, scored a goal, the only King so far to score in the playoffs.
Mikey Anderson and Mathieu Joseph were also great in this game defensively, combining to finish with eight hits and eight blocked shots.
Tough loss for the Kings and an opportunity to secure the split, now they're headed home trailing 2-0.
Game 3 will be on Thursday, 7:00 PM PT at Crypto.com Arena.
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New York Knicks (53-29, third in the Eastern Conference) vs. Atlanta Hawks (46-36, sixth in the Eastern Conference)
Atlanta; Thursday, 7 p.m. EDT
LINE: Hawks -1.5; over/under is 216.5
EASTERN CONFERENCE FIRST ROUND: Series tied 1-1
BOTTOM LINE: The Atlanta Hawks and the New York Knicks are in a 1-1 series tie in the Eastern Conference first round. The Hawks defeated the Knicks 107-106 in the last matchup on Tuesday. CJ McCollum led the Hawks with 32 points, and Jalen Brunson led the Knicks with 29.
The Hawks are 27-25 against Eastern Conference opponents. Atlanta is 20-26 against opponents over .500.
The Knicks have gone 35-17 against Eastern Conference opponents. New York ranks fourth in the Eastern Conference with 45.6 rebounds per game led by Karl-Anthony Towns averaging 11.9.
The 118.5 points per game the Hawks average are 8.4 more points than the Knicks give up (110.1). The Knicks are shooting 47.8% from the field, 0.4% higher than the 47.4% the Hawks' opponents have shot this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Jalen Johnson is averaging 22.5 points, 10.3 rebounds and 7.9 assists for the Hawks. Nickeil Alexander-Walker is averaging 20.2 points and 3.4 assists over the last 10 games.
Brunson is averaging 26 points and 6.8 assists for the Knicks. OG Anunoby is averaging 2.6 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Hawks: 6-4, averaging 117.7 points, 43.6 rebounds, 27.6 assists, 8.7 steals and 5.0 blocks per game while shooting 48.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 111.7 points per game.
Knicks: 6-4, averaging 110.7 points, 43.0 rebounds, 25.8 assists, 8.1 steals and 3.5 blocks per game while shooting 48.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 106.2 points.
INJURIES: Hawks: Jock Landale: out (ankle).
Knicks: None listed.
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Cleveland Cavaliers (52-30, fourth in the Eastern Conference) vs. Toronto Raptors (46-36, fifth in the Eastern Conference)
Toronto; Thursday, 8 p.m. EDT
LINE: Cavaliers -3; over/under is 219.5
EASTERN CONFERENCE FIRST ROUND: Cavaliers lead series 2-0
BOTTOM LINE: The Cleveland Cavaliers visit the Toronto Raptors in the Eastern Conference first round with a 2-0 lead in the series. The Cavaliers won the last matchup 115-105 on Monday, led by 30 points from Donovan Mitchell. Scottie Barnes led the Raptors with 26.
The Raptors have gone 33-19 against Eastern Conference opponents. Toronto is 7-4 in one-possession games.
The Cavaliers are 33-19 against Eastern Conference opponents. Cleveland is seventh in the Eastern Conference with 44.4 rebounds per game led by Evan Mobley averaging 9.0.
The Raptors average 114.6 points per game, 0.8 fewer points than the 115.4 the Cavaliers give up. The Cavaliers are shooting 48.2% from the field, 1.5% higher than the 46.7% the Raptors' opponents have shot this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Brandon Ingram is averaging 21.5 points, 5.6 rebounds and 3.7 assists for the Raptors. RJ Barrett is averaging 19.4 points over the last 10 games.
James Harden is averaging 23.6 points and eight assists for the Cavaliers. Mitchell is averaging 20.0 points over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Raptors: 4-6, averaging 115.8 points, 38.9 rebounds, 29.8 assists, 8.3 steals and 4.0 blocks per game while shooting 51.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 112.4 points per game.
Cavaliers: 8-2, averaging 120.7 points, 43.2 rebounds, 27.3 assists, 8.5 steals and 4.2 blocks per game while shooting 51.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 116.0 points.
INJURIES: Raptors: Immanuel Quickley: day to day (hamstring).
Cavaliers: Thomas Bryant: day to day (calf).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Denver Nuggets (54-28, third in the Western Conference) vs. Minnesota Timberwolves (49-33, sixth in the Western Conference)
Minneapolis; Thursday, 9:30 p.m. EDT
LINE: Nuggets -1.5; over/under is 234
WESTERN CONFERENCE FIRST ROUND: Series tied 1-1
BOTTOM LINE: The Minnesota Timberwolves host the Denver Nuggets in game three of the Western Conference first round with the series tied 1-1. The Timberwolves defeated the Nuggets 119-114 in the last matchup on Tuesday. Anthony Edwards led the Timberwolves with 30 points, and Jamal Murray led the Nuggets with 30.
The Timberwolves are 9-7 against the rest of their division. Minnesota ranks eighth in the Western Conference with 50.3 points per game in the paint led by Edwards averaging 11.0.
The Nuggets are 11-5 against the rest of their division. Denver scores 122.1 points and has outscored opponents by 5.2 points per game.
The Timberwolves are shooting 48.1% from the field this season, 1.3 percentage points higher than the 46.8% the Nuggets allow to opponents. The Nuggets average 14.2 made 3-pointers per game this season, 2.1 more made shots on average than the 12.1 per game the Timberwolves allow.
TOP PERFORMERS: Julius Randle is averaging 21.1 points, 6.7 rebounds and five assists for the Timberwolves. Ayo Dosunmu is averaging 13 points and 3.2 assists over the past 10 games.
Murray is averaging 25.4 points and 7.1 assists for the Nuggets. Nikola Jokic is averaging 23.4 points over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Timberwolves: 5-5, averaging 117.9 points, 40.9 rebounds, 25.9 assists, 8.3 steals and 5.8 blocks per game while shooting 48.3% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 116.8 points per game.
Nuggets: 9-1, averaging 127.5 points, 48.1 rebounds, 31.0 assists, 7.2 steals and 4.2 blocks per game while shooting 49.4% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 117.3 points.
INJURIES: Timberwolves: None listed.
Nuggets: Peyton Watson: out (hamstring).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
PHOENIX — Well, maybe Munetaka Murakami won’t have a difficult time making that transition from Japan to Major League Baseball after all.
In the meantime, is he ever making a whole lot of teams look foolish for ignoring him in free agency.
Murakami made more history Tuesday night by homering for the fourth consecutive game in the Chicago White Sox’s 11-5 rout over the Arizona Diamondbacks — a 434-foot shot —going where no Japanese player has ever gone before.
He is not only the first Japanese-born player to hit nine homers in his first 23 games, but also the first player since at least 1900 to produce nine homers and more than 20 walks in the first 23 games of a career.
The only Japanese players who have ever homered in four consecutive games at any juncture in their career are three-time MVP Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago Cubs All-Star outfielder Seiya Suzuki.
Murakami, 26, is looking just like the dude who was Nippon Professional Baseball’s premier slugger, breaking the legendary Sadaharu Oh’s single-season home run record with 56 homers as a 22-year-old, and winning two MVP awards.
Sure, the season is just three weeks old, but the strikeouts and swing-and-miss rates that spiked since his historic 2022 season, with teams concerned whether he’d make enough contact to even provide power, now are regretting that they allowed the White Sox to virtually steal Murakami with a modest two-year, $34 million contract.
Murakami is soft-spoken and humble about his early heroics, saying he simply is happy that he’s contributing, but his bat is doing a whole lot of talking.
Murakami is hitting .234 with nine homers — just one behind MLB leader Yordan Alvarez of the Houston Astros — with 17 RBI and a .978 OPS. He has struck out 33 times in 97 plate appearances, but he has also walked 22 times, giving him a .398 on-base percentage.
He is everything the White Sox could have imagined, and much more.
“He puts himself in a real good position every single pitch,’’ White Sox manager Will Venable said. “He’s on time. He sees the ball well. … We’re seeing real good plate discipline. Obviously, the power is incredible. Continues to improve defensively. I think I may be slowing him down a little bit on the bases. He always wants to get out and steal some bases. But he’s just a guy that’s getting more and more comfortable every day.
“Obviously, he’s having a lot of success.’’
Murakami indeed is looking quite comfortable these days, hitting four homers for a combined 1,705 feet. He reached base four times Tuesday, including his 434-foot blast off Diamondbacks starter Merrill Kelly, his MLB-leading third homer this season traveling 113 mph or faster off his bat.
It certainly brought back memories of his 432-foot blast off Kelly in the 2023 World Baseball Classic championship game over USA.
“I was able to image the pitcher a lot better because I did face him in the WBC,’’ Murakami said. “The time I hit in the WBC was a fastball, but today was a [89-mph] changeup. But I was really happy that I was able to hit it for a home run.’’
What pleases Murakami more than anything, he says, is that his home runs have helped ignite the White Sox offense. They’ve scored 33 runs in their four games on this trip, winning three of them.
“We’re very much connecting from the top to the bottom in the lineup,’’ he said, “and I think it’s just really important that we really continue as a team to get good results. I hope we can keep doing that.’’
The Diamondbacks, one of several teams that had interest in Murakami but were not a finalist in the bidding, could only sit back and admire the show, feeling a tinge of jealousy.
“He was on a lot of people’s radar screens,’’ Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said. “We knew there was a special player there. I’ve been watching him closely, and I’ve been a fan of his.
Munetaka Murakami smashed his fourth home run in four games, kicking off a back-to-back-to-back homer parade in the second. | (Getty Images)
After a truly insane nine innings of baseball, the White Sox (9-14) won their second game in a row, taking the first game of the series against the Diamondbacks (13-10), 11-5. The South Side bats were on fire, the pitching was solid, and the defense was making diving plays all over the place — it would probably be easier if I told you what didn’t happen. It’s been a minute since I was this excited watching the Chicago White Sox play baseball, so bear with me as I am still slightly in shock.
Outhitting the D-backs 14-8, the Good Guys smashed six of those for extra bases: a double, triple, and four home runs. Although they exploded for 11 runs, they did still manage to go 2-for-12 with runners in scoring position and left nine on base, but we’re not talking about that right now. Nearly everyone got a hit, except for Everson Pereira and Reese McGuire, who still managed to drive in at least one run. There was so much offensive production from this team tonight that half of the lineup (five batters) produced multi-hit games.
Sean Burke mostly cruised through his start and was able to maintain control, though the same couldn’t be said for righthander Merrill Kelly. The Good Guys nearly batted through the order in the top of the first, and they wasted no time pouring runs on Kelly and the Diamondbacks, dropping a four-spot to give Burke plenty of cushion before he even threw a pitch. The Sox immediately caused trouble to start the game with consecutive base hits from Andrew Benintendi and Munetaka Murakami, and Miguel Vargas walked to load the bases. Keeping his momentum up from Sunday after mashing a long ball, Colson Montgomery squared one up and ripped a two-run double to center to give the South Siders a two-run lead, 2-0. They tacked on two more after a sacrifice fly from Everson Pereira, and Sam Antonacci drove in his first major league run with an RBI triple to make it 4-0, Good Guys.
If you thought the first inning was fun, the second was even better. Murakami continued to showcase his prowess at the plate and kicked off a two-out rally by smashing his fourth home run in as many games, joining some solid company as just the third Japanese-born player ever to homer four games in a row. Have a freaking week, Mune:
To really pour salt into Kelly’s gaping wound, Vargas followed up Mune’s moonshot with a line drive homer to left, and Montgomery clobbered a 440-foot tank to center to give the Sox a seven-run lead.
BACK.
TO BACK.
TO-BACK!
With seven runs to work with, Burke simply just had to lock in and throw strikes, and he pretty much did just that. It also helped that the South Siders added an eighth run in the top of the fifth on a Reese McGuire sacrifice fly. Burke had gotten into some hot water in the bottom of the first, but cleaned up after himself. Ketel Marte drove a leadoff base hit, making it to second a few moments later on a wild pitch to get into scoring position. A swinging bunt pulled Burke over to the first base line, and he was able to tag the runner and get the double play at the plate to end the inning as Marte was trying to sneak a run in.
Burke was otherwise scoreless through three and was efficient overall in his six innings. Geraldo Perdomo tripled to begin the fourth and subsequently scored on an RBI ground out for Arizona’s first run of the game. Just two runs allowed on five hits — including a solo home run from Alek Thomas in the fifth — and one walk while striking out three. Burke has now lowered his ERA from 4.43 to 4.10.
To help Burke and the pitching staff out, the defense was also excellent and definitely helped keep some Arizona runs from scoring, especially as the ninth inning got a little dicey. Antonacci had made a nice sliding catch out in left, and Pereira was all over the place, laying out twice for two different balls to rob a couple of base hits, making the catches flawlessly. This play, especially in the seventh, was key to shutting down any momentum that the Diamondbacks were building up, as this almost surely would have been a triple had Pereira not caught it:
Out of the bullpen, Lucas Sims tossed a hitless inning thanks to Pereira bailing him out, as the two baserunners reached base on balls, though he did strike out one. For the final two innings, righthander Osvaldo Bido made his first appearance in a White Sox uniform, picked up on waivers after being designated for assignment by the Atlanta Braves last week. Bido walked two batters but was otherwise decent in the eighth, and he fortunately didn’t have to worry too much about the lead since the South Siders tagged on three more runs in the ninth.
After checking his first MLB RBI off the list earlier in the game, Antonacci decided to cross off his first major league homer: an inside-the-park home run. The rookie ripped a ball down the left field line that ended up sort of hitting the ball boy, but Lourdes Gurriel Jr. gave up on the play, likely thinking that it would be called a ground-rule double or interference. Who knows.
Since the top of the inning was weird, the bottom half had to follow suit. Arizona started to rally, and it seemed like the game wasn’t ever going to end. Will Venable clearly didn’t want to go to the bullpen for a couple of outs with a nine-run lead, and I can not blame him for that, but Bido was struggling to throw strikes, and when he did, the D-backs were really starting to catch up to him. After two base hits, he gave up a garbage-time three-run bomb to Ildemaro Vargas, who extended his hitting streak to 19, right in the nick of time. Though Bido walked a couple more batters, he eventually was able to get out of it to close out the game, officially crediting Burke with his first win of the season.
Apr 21, 2026; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Utah Mammoth center Logan Cooley (92) takes a face off against the Vegas Golden Knights during the first period of game two of the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images
Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images
LAS VEGAS — Logan Cooley scored off a rebound with six minutes left to give the Mammoth a 3-2 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday night, and they will head back to Utah with a split of the first two games in their first-round playoffs series.
Game 3 of the best-of-seven series is Friday night in Salt Lake City.
Cooley, a 21-year-old from Pittsburgh, is the youngest U.S.-born player to scored a goal in each of his first two playoff games.
It's the first playoff victory for the Mammoth since the organization relocated from Arizona two years ago.
This was the Golden Knights' first regulation defeat under coach John Tortorella (8-1-1).
Dylan Guenther had a goal and assist for the Mammoth, MacKenzie Weegar scored and Kailer Yamamoto finished with two assists. Karel Vejmelka recorded 19 saves.
Mark Stone and Ivan Barbashev scored for the Golden Knights, with Jack Eichel picking up the primary assist on each. Carter Hart, who stopped 26 shots, suffered his first loss under Tortorella in Vegas after winning his first seven starts.
With the score tied at 2 in the waning minutes of regulation, Guenther took a shot off the rush, got his own rebound and then hit the puck off the post. Cooley was waiting there, knocking in the puck to pull the Mammoth even.
The teams traded goals in each of the first two periods.
After Stone scored in the first period on a shot that went off Utah defenseman Mikhail Sergachev's skate, the Golden Knights, for the second game in a row, had an unforced error in which the puck ended up in their net. Weegar was credited with the goal after the puck went off two Vegas defensemen — Noah Hanifin's stick and Rasmus Andersson's shin — into the open net.
Guenther delivered a shot from the left point in the second period for the Mammoth, before Barbashev answered 1:02 later by weaving through the slot to put in a backhand.
ST.
LOUIS – The
St. Louis Blues tried their darndest. Oh, did they ever.
They
tried to overcome near impossible odds
to break the door down to the Western Conference playoff race for a
second straight season.
But
in the end, it was just too much to overcome this year. Living on the
edge, in the end, is not the way to go, to be honest.
The
Blues got into the tournament as the second wild card in large part
to a franchise-record 12-game winning streak, and even then, they
squeaked in past the Calgary Flames by winning on the final day of
the regular season and getting in on the first tiebreaker with one
more regulation win (32-31).
They
were 14 points out of the wild card heading into the Olympic break
but were able to get as close as three points as late as April 5 but
finally ran out of steam, before finishing this season 37-33-12, four
points behind the Los Angeles Kings.
So
why are the Blues of the past two seasons so good late but so poor
early?
“It’s
kind of hard to say what really caused it,” Blues
forward Jordan Kyrou said.
“I think that’s something as a team internally, we’ve got to
talk to each other about and find out as a group and then obviously
down the stretch after the break, we kind of found our footing a
little bit. We started to play kind of how we wanted as a team and
kind of to our identity.”
Let’s
look at the numbers by month of the past two seasons:
*
October – 8-13-2
*
November – 12-10-5
*
December – 13-12-3
*
January – 9-16-1
*
February – 7-4-2
*
March – 22-4-3
*
April – 9-4-2
So
October-January, the team is 42-51-11, and once the clock turns and
they go to February-April, the Blues are 38-12-7.
And
after bulldozing their way into the playoffs last season and
expectations rising to a level of at least competing for the playoffs
once again. And losing in the fashion that they did in Game 7 of the
first round against the Winnipeg Jets, there should have been a
summer’s worth of motivation to come in with their skates on fire.
It
never happened.
“Disappointing
I would say,” Blues
general manager Doug Armstrong said.
“I thought we were, based on the second half of last season and
then the playoffs, I thought we had progressed to a spot where we
would be more competitive out of the gate. Obviously our first half
of the season was not to the standard that we had hoped for, made us
re-assess our short term and maybe medium-term plans, not our
long-term plans. I would say that I thought that we would be a better
team.”
Coach
Jim Montgomery added, “Poor start, and then I would say not being
able to find solutions early enough to be able to get on the right
path was very frustrating, for everybody involved, and we all need to
be significantly better. We all need to change and affect change
within ourselves, and that’s not easy to do, whether it’s your
training habits, it’s your attitude, it’s your mindset. All of
those things need to be different for us to get off to a better
start. It’s two years in a row that I’ve been accustomed to
what’s happened here. I don’t know what happened in the two years
prior to that, but they were non-playoff years as well. Getting off
to a better start and trying to find the attitudes and the mindsets
that we’ve had in the last two months of the season in the last two
years, not because of results, but because the mindsets and the
attitudes were significantly different.”
Montgomery
used a word there that’s key to everything: attitude.
Why
is it that this particular group, and it likely won’t look exactly
the same as the one that ended the season against the Utah Mammoth,
doesn’t view October-January games like it does February-April?
Those
games mean the same on Oct. 28 mean exactly the same as the ones
played on April 5, and that’s attitude, and until that changes, the
Blues are going to be the same group that disappoints early, gets the
fans’ hopes up late, only to more times than not, come up short.
“Attitude’s
the most important thing,” Montgomery said. “All of us have to be
willing to do the right things on a consistent level and it’s got
to be an attitude of, I believe it’s a Truman quote that it’s not
who gets the praise but it’s the common good of the group that
succeeds. It doesn’t matter who gets the credit for the success. It
matters who’s doing the work together to create the success, and
that needs to be the attitude by everybody, and I’m not just
talking players.
“I
don’t care of you drive the Zamboni. Drive the Zamboni the best way
that you can and make sure you don’t miss a line. Those are the
kind of attitudes that we’ve got to make sure everyone’s having.”
Armstrong
agreed.
“Yeah,
there has to be a reckoning of what happened and how it happened and
make sure it doesn’t happen again,” he said. “I’m not talking
about the wins and losses, it’s just our attitude of how we came to
work every day. I shared with some people today, the groups that I
have worked with that have had success loved the grind. They loved
the challenge. They loved the adversity. They couldn’t wait for it.
They thrived under it. They wanted someone to punch them in the mouth
so they could respond. That’s what you’re seeing (from) 16 teams
playing now that had that and we are not one of them today.”
So
how do they change it?
“I
think it’s preparation, but I think guys got to truly sink into
that,” said Blues forward Dylan Holloway, who ripped off 34 points
(14 goals, 20 assists) the final 25 games of the season. “It’s
not that guys aren’t prepared, per se. Everybody’s working all
summer, everyone’s training hard, but I think more mentally, it’s
kind of like, ‘OK, we start on this day’ like mentally. I think
mentally we’ve got to take it back a little bit and truly like be
mentally prepared for the season because like you said, we got off to
two slow starts. But for me, it’s not like this team doesn’t have
the capability to be an elite team, to be a playoff team. It’s just
kind of finding that consistency more and the start’s huge.”
The
Blues never had more than a four-game winning streak this past
season. That’s part of the consistency that was missing for large
swaths. Last season, they were the last team to reel off a three-game
winning streak. This season, they never won more than two games in a
row until the first of three four-game streaks starting March 1-6.
The
harsh reality of having to sit at Enterprise Center this past
Saturday and think about why they failed really set in.
“I
think it starts with training camp,” Armstrong
said.
“And it’s going to be interesting because we’re all going into
a new training camp format. We’re down to four (preseason)
games,
it’s two weeks, there’s a lot of pressure on the players to show
up in great shape. The nagging training camp injuries you see are
going to bleed into the first and second week of the season now. So
players are going to have to skate harder in the summer, they’re
going to have to take care of themselves, they’re going to have to
have leadership practices that are almost NHL practices. You can’t
have sore groins and sore backs like you could when Bernie [Federko]
was playing. You have to show up ready, so I think that’s going to
be a main focus and then I think respecting the league. Understand
that it’s a very difficult league and if you’re not prepared
mentally and physically to play, you’re going to fall back and I
think our mental toughness has to improve. Our ability to turn the
page quickly, I think we hung onto things organizationally too long
and they dragged into the second game, the third game, and then I
think we didn’t get grounded quick enough after a couple of wins.
It felt like it took us five years to win multiple games in a row
there for a while. We didn’t have that mental resolve that
playoff-caliber teams have.”
Montgomery
wasn’t around for the off-season going into the 2024-25 season but
was last year. It was his first full camp as the coach and
understands when players report, there will be no easing into camp.
“There’s
a couple of things you can do. I’ve always been a coach that looks
to get the team off to a … pace is really important in camp, I’m
just talking about training camp,” Montgomery
said.
“I think training camp bleeds into … players got to do their work
to be in great shape and be ready to go and having done improvements
in their games on their own in the summer because they’re not under
our guide at that time. When you start the year, training camp, I
always believe you build the whole, which means five-man groups and
you get off to pace and you start to build the details and habits
within that. The finer points, they have to teach individuals. You
build that as you go along. So you start with a whole, then you build
the small parts, and then you go back to the whole. That has usually
driven a lot of success, but I would say my last two training camps,
that hasn’t happened. So now I’m going to be looking at those
habits and details starting with the small parts and that requires a
lot more gruntwork, a lot more grind on the players. It means camp’s
going to be harder, but that’s the way it needs to be. We need to
change things in order … to affect change, you need to change. So
that’s the things I’m looking at to affect change.
“After
being done with the year-end meetings with the players and getting
their perspective on some of the questions that you guys are asking,
I’m asking them pointedly, ‘What will they do to affect change?’
I told you guys that. Then I’ve got to start looking for assistant
coaches. Then it’s going to be working a lot with ‘Steener’ on
how we see the team, not only playing, how we’re going to make our
team have a better camp. All those things, him and I need to discuss
ad nauseum because it’s really important that we have a great
summer. In order to have a great start, you have to have a great
summer. It starts right away. For us, that’s this week.”
The
players get the long off-season to reflect but they’ve really got
to dig into it and understand that the status quo isn’t nearly good
enough.
“I
think we’ve all got to really reflect on it,” said
Blues forward Robert Thomas, who also ended the season on fire with
31 points (14 goals, 17 assists) in 22 games.
“Obviously it’s been something that’s happened the last two
years in a row. I think a lot of opinions and stuff should be kept
private and handled inside. After those conversations happen, I think
we can all come together and kind of voice our opinions and plans on
how we’re going to change that.”
And
just just change one thing, it’s change plenty, because early this
season, goaltending was poor, defensive play was poor, the offense
was lacking consistency and special teams were bad.
“Obviously
everybody strives to get into the playoffs and go for a run,” Blues
defenseman Philip Broberg said. “Obviously sitting here, it’s
disappointing. We didn’t get (off) to a good start to the season
and then we kind of got going. But I think it was pretty
disappointing to not make the playoffs for sure.”
But
as much as the Blues need to change with their attitude towards Game
1 to 84 – yes, 84 next season, Holloway wants to make one thing
clear.
“Our
culture in the room is amazing,” he
said.
“I feel like everybody’s friends with everybody, everybody talks
to everybody. The guys go for dinner with everybody. It’s a rare
thing to have as tight of a group as we do. It was weird like that to
start. I feel like everybody thought that we were going to get off to
a hot start and it was just going to continue from where we were last
year and then when that didn’t happen, it was kind of a shock to
everyone. It took us a little bit to get it back together and then
when we did, you can see how good hockey that we did play. I think
the goal going into next season is to find that right away.”
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Lakers forward LeBron James elevates for a double-pumping reverse dunk during the third quarter of Game 2 on Tuesday night. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
They did the heavy lifting for the Lakers, combining for 76 points, 16 rebounds and 16 assists to carry the Lakers to a 101-94 win over the Houston Rockets in Game 2 of the Western Conference playoffs Tuesday night at Crypto.com Arena.
James had another near triple-double with 28 points, eight rebounds and seven assists to help the Lakers take a commanding 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series. He capped his night with a two-handed dunk with 55.3 seconds left to make sure the Lakers didn’t blow a 15-point lead they built in the first half.
Lakers guard Marcus Smart, sprawled on the court, steals the ball from Rockets forward Kevin Durant during the first quarter of Game 2. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Smart had 25 points, seven assists and two rebounds while his defense was outstanding once again. Smart, who was eight-for-13 from the field, drilled a big-time three-pointer late in the fourth quarter to give the Lakers an eight-point lead.
Kennard had 23 points, six rebounds and two assists. His two free throws with 14.3 seconds left capped the scoring.
And once again, the Lakers showed their clutch genes, this time doing so with Luka Doncic (Grade 2 left hamstring strain) and Austin Reaves (Grade 2 left oblique muscle strain), sitting on the bench injured.
The Lakers had the best clutch record in the NBA during the regular season, going 22-8 in games when the score was within five points in the final five minutes. The Rockets on the other hand, went 22-23 during clutch moments, ranking 16th in the league.
“We all got to pick up our play,” James said. “When you’ve got two big guns out like we have, we all got to pick up our play. And that's all it's about. We’re all just trying to contribute, make contributions in all facets of the game, pick up our play. Obviously, we're missing Luka and missing AR, so we’re just trying to seize the opportunity. That's all.”
Kevin Durant returned to play after missing Game 1 because of a right knee contusion, and he was sharp early on, scoring 20 points in the first half. But Durant had just three points in the second half and he had nine turnovers for the game.
With the Rockets hosting Game 3 on Friday night, James said he found no comfort in how the Lakers defended Durant.
“None. That just makes him even madder going into Game 3. No satisfaction,” James, who played 39 minutes and 12 seconds, said. “You know, we did our job. We did that. But the guy's a first-ballot Hall of Famer and he's going to make way more great plays than not. So, we don't have no satisfaction. That game is over and done with, but it's still a tall challenge.”
Lakers guard Luke Kennard takes the ball from Rockets forward Kevin Durant during Game 2 of their first-round playoff series at Crypto.Com Arena on Tuesday. (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
The starting backcourt of Smart and Kennard, starting in place of Doncic and Reaves, had the kind of first-quarter scoring display Doncic is known for delivering.
Smart had 14 points in the first 12 minutes, shooting five for seven from the field and three for four from three-point range. Kennard had 10 points in the first, shooting four for six from the field and two for three from three-point range.
"Whether those guys are here or not, obviously we would love for them to be here,” said Smart, who played 35:29. “They elevate us to a whole other level, right? And we understand that. But they're not and there's nothing we can do about it but step our game up for those guys."
During the regular season, Doncic, Reaves and James were the Big Three for the Lakers.
But James has two new mates to help the cause, and Smart and Kennard are holding it down.
It started in Game 1, when James, Smart and Kennard combined for 61 of the Lakers’ 107 points, 14 rebounds and 24 assists.
Houston forward Kevin Durant passes the ball under pressure from Lakers forward Rui Hachimura and center Jaxson Hayes Tuesday night at Crypto.com Arena. (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
“We know throughout the game we’re going to have the ball in our hands the most, us three,” said Kennard, who played 41:58. “Again, it’s just playing within the flow of the game when we can. Seeing what adjustments they made earlier in the game and just trying to find ways to beat it. I thought we did a good job of staying poised and under control overall. … But, like I said, us three, we know we’re going to have the ball the majority of the time when it comes down to it and we have to be aggressive and look for the right play each time.”
Etc.
When asked about a report saying Reaves has progressed to one-on-one court work and what Doncic is able to do, Lakers coach JJ Redick said, “Yeah, no update on the timeline for either of those guys.”
“Austin has started a return-to-play [plan,] but we don't have any timeline update for him,” Redick added. “And then Luka I think is gonna start some court work here soon. But again, no update on timeline.”
Redick was asked if Reaves returning to play meant he is starting some support work.
“Yeah. But he, again, it's an upper-body injury versus a lower-body injury, so it's different things,” Redick said.
Redick was asked one last time what return-to-play progression looks like for Reaves.
But even with Kevin Durant available and having a hot start, Game 2 played out similarly to the playoffs series-opener, with the Lakers beating the Rockets 101-94 at Crypto.com Arena to take a two-game lead in the best-of-seven first round series.
Durant led the Rockets with 23 points, six rebounds and four assists after missing the first game of the series because of a right knee contusion.
But the Lakers once again stifled the Rockets’ offense.
“There’s a natural flow to series where the team that wins [Game 1] can relax a little bit and the team that loses comes out and plays with more desperation,” coach JJ Redick said. “Our guys at least matched their sense of desperation. Our second efforts, all that stuff. You’ve got to win a bunch of little fights, that can be your catch position, that can be your screens, that can be creating separation, that can be boxing out. But this team requires you to win a bunch of little fights.”
LeBron James scored a team-high 28 points to go with eight rebounds and seven assists. Luke Kennard had 23 points and six rebounds, while Marcus Smart stuffed the stat sheet with 25 points, seven assists and five steals.
What it means
The Lakers have a 2-0 series lead over the Rockets, the first time they’ve done so since winning the 2020 NBA Finals against the Heat.
Since the NBA moved to a 16-team playoff format in 1984, teams that go up 2-0 in a series under the 2-2-1-1-1 home/away pattern have a 245-23 record (91.4% winning percentage of the series).
“It means nothing,” James said. “The series is not won until you win four. It’s the first to four.”
LeBron, who had a game-high 28 points, goes up for a dunk during the Lakers’ 101-94 win over the Rockets in Game 2 of their first-round series on April 21, 2026 in Los Angeles. NBAE via Getty Images
Turning point
When Smart knocked down a corner 3 to give the Lakers a 95-87 lead with 2:23 left in the game.
The shot was not only Smart’s fifth 3-pointer, but gave the Lakers breathing room late.
Smart also picked up a crucial steal against Durant, who had nine turnovers, before assisting James on a dunk to give the Lakers a 99-92 lead.
Kevin Durant looks to grab a loose ball as Marcus Smart defends during the Lakers’ Game 2 win over the Rockets in Los Angeles. Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
MVP: Marcus Smart
Smart made five of the Lakers’ 13 3s and made big plays on both ends of the floor throughout Tuesday.
His scoring total was the third time he reached at least 25 points in a playoff game, which he last did during the 2020 Eastern Conference Finals when he had 26 points in a Game 1 loss to the Heat.
Smart’s playoff career-high is 27 points.
“To be able to be back on this stage again,” Smart said, “making the plays that I’m making with these guys, with this team, this organization, I’m just grateful.
Stat of the game: 9
That was the number of turnovers Durant had on Tuesday, which tied a career high for the most giveaways he’s had in a playoff game
Including Tuesday, Durant’s turned the ball over nine times in a playoff game three times.
Up next
The Lakers-Rockets series will move to Houston for the next two games, with Game 3 taking place on Friday at Toyota Center.
SAN FRANCISCO — Jung Hoo Lee and Rafael Devers each hit RBI singles in the first inning that held up to support starter Landen Roupp, and the San Francisco Giants beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 3-1 on Tuesday night.
Shohei Ohtani went hitless with a pair of strikeouts over his initial three at-bats before a seventh-inning single that extended his career-best on-base streak to 53 games, tied for second place on the Dodgers' franchise list with Shawn Green. On the 3-1 pitch from Erik Miller before his single, Ohtani challenged thinking it was a ball, but the called strike was upheld to make it full count.
Roupp (4-1) struck out seven, walked five and allowed one run on one hit over five innings against the big-spending Dodgers. He struck out the side swinging in order in the third, including Ohtani’s second K of the game — a sign to manager Dave Roberts how much he wanted to keep the on-base streak alive.
Ryan Walker, San Francisco's sixth pitcher, pitched a 1-2-3 ninth with two strikeouts for his second save after blowing his first opportunity Saturday at Washington. The Dodgers were held to three hits.
Casey Schmitt added a sacrifice fly in the three-run first as the Giants won for the fourth time in five games while outscoring opponents 23-15 after beginning the season 6-12.
It began pouring rain for a stretch in the bottom of the sixth inning, but the game went on as fans in the sellout crowd of 40,066 sought cover.
World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto (2-2) gave up three earned runs on six hits over seven innings with four strikeouts and two walks.
Los Angeles center fielder Alex Call was checked on by an athletic trainer in the bottom of the first after making a running catch on Schmitt's sacrifice fly and collided straight into left fielder Teoscar Hernández. Lee followed with an RBI single to make it 3-0 after Devers' single started the scoring.
Ross Lyon’s press conferences are typically a mix of battery and flattery. On any given day, you’ll get smart-arsery, hostility, humility, occasional mirth and genuine insight. Sometimes, he will provide a 10-minute explanation of how the game was won or lost. Sometimes, he’s playful and rhetorical. Sometimes, he’ll cock his head and look at the questioner like they have no business even being in the same room as him.
The St Kilda coach has been criticised for the way he responded to a set of perfectly reasonable questions in Adelaide last weekend. “Do you have a sense of where you’re at in the context of the season?” was one of them. He didn’t exactly react like Bob Hawke to Richard Carleton’s “impertinence” in 1983. But it was a typical Lyon response – part superciliousness, part drollery, part deflection. It was nothing, really. The journalist handled it well, and the coach didn’t cross the line.
BOSTON — For a few minutes Tuesday, it seemed VJ Edgecombe and the Sixers’ night would be defined by his first-quarter crash to the TD Garden floor after he leapt for a defensive rebound.
Then Edgecombe showed up on the Sixers’ sideline and reminded everyone that he’s more than just a rising star.
In the second playoff game of his rookie year, Edgecombe was downright heroic in a 30-point, 10-rebound performance. Backcourt mate Tyrese Maxey was also excellent in the fourth quarter of a 29-point, nine-assist night and the seventh-seeded Sixers flew home with their first-round playoff series vs. the Celtics tied at 1-1.
“He’s a tough kid,” Andre Drummond said of Edgecombe. “His confidence is something I haven’t seen in a very long time. He plays with a swag that a lot of guys don’t play with when they’re coming up.
“I’m happy that he’s here. He’s playing at a very high level and we need more from him next game, too. So he has to stay prepared.”
Based on all the evidence of his rookie season, readiness shouldn’t be an issue for Edgecombe the rest of this series. Time and again, he’s elevated his play in the clutch, shrugged off rocky shooting starts and attacked whatever’s in front of him.
Even as he’s quizzed teammates on NBA life and digested a constant flow of new information, nothing about Edgecombe’s day-to-day demeanor has betrayed uncertainty.
Has he ever doubted himself as a rookie?
“I just try not to overthink it,” he said. “I try not to put pressure on myself. Everyone else is already putting pressure on us to perform, so I’m not trying to put pressure on myself.
“I’m around a great group of guys that also help me and keep instilling confidence in me just to keep going, regardless of who’s on the floor, who’s not on the floor. It’s just a big shoutout to my teammates and my coaches.”
Those teammates sometimes forget exactly how young Edgecombe is.
In the middle of glowing about Edgecombe’s game at the postgame press conference podium, 35-year-old Paul George looked to his right.
“It’s just impressive, man,” George said of the Sixers’ rookie guard. “Thirty and 10, but it was just what we needed in moments throughout this game where he took over. He kind of just put us at ease when I wasn’t on the floor or Tyrese wasn’t on the floor. He just put us at ease, got to his spots and made big plays. And he had some big rebounds as well.”
There’s still room to grow, but Edgecombe’s jump shooting progress has been exceptional since his freshman season at Baylor. He was fine as an outside shooter in college (34 percent from three-point range), but Edgecombe wasn’t especially smooth off the dribble and lacked craft in the mid-range.
Edgecombe has increased his three-point volume in the NBA and sharpened his mid-range skills. He’s been happy to punish defenses that play drop pick-and-roll coverage and let him walk into pull-up jumpers, give him space in transition, or leave him open for catch-and-shoot chances. After an 0-for-5 day in Game 1, he shot 6 for 10 beyond the arc Tuesday.
“I think we knew where the shots were going to come, where the help was going to be at,” Edgecombe said. “Credit to my teammates. We kept trusting each other. Everyone can make a play on the court. … I was in the spot and they wanted me to shoot the ball.
“It wouldn’t have been right if I didn’t shoot the ball, so I had to shoot the ball. They were wide-open shots. Try to get my teammates their assists.”
Edgecombe also made a visit back to the locker room early in the third quarter. Once more, he returned and thrived.
He had a good-natured but cagy veteran’s answer on his health postgame.
“I just landed on my back, but I’m good. I was able to finish the game, so I’m good,” Edgecombe said, smiling. “That’s all I got for you. Ain’t nothing wrong with me; I’m good.”
